Something for the weekend...

The Tiny Wife by Andrew Kaufman

This is the first 'something for the weekend' that you could actually read in a weekend (easily). Clocking in at 87 pages it certainly doesn't outstay it's welcome.

Andrew Kaufman's first book was 'All my friends are superheroes' (2003) another short one it sold very well, mostly through word of mouth (I thoroughly recommend it, it's 'something else for the weekend'). He followed that with 'The Waterproof Bible' which is, shall we say, his 'difficult 2nd album', (his charming, quirky style is better in short bursts - but it's still worth a read).

The tiny wife begins with a bank robbery, but the mysterious, enigmatic thief isn't stealing money. Instead he takes one emotionally resonant item from each customer in the bank (''51% per cent of their soul''). The book then follows the victim's post robbery lives as strange & inexplicable & even fatal things occur. The 'Tiny Wife' Stacey begins to shrink very slowly & the book is based round the reasons for this & the attempt to stop this happening.

Now, Kaufman is not subtle, (Stacey is literally shrinking due to a loss of self worth/love from her marriage... a baby excretes cash until it becomes a choice between the baby's life & the money..) however he is funny & engaging & very easy to read (ideal for the weekend!). Plus in this book he has delightful silhouettes drawn by Tom Percival which add to the grown up fairy tale feel of the whole thing. (All in all it would make a lovely little gift). So if you're a fan of 'Amelie' (the Jeunet film), or the works of Tim Burton or any kind of magic realism - give Kaufman a go.

Gary

Buy it here